Composed
by ImperialSalesman
Summary: The year is 2558, six months after the attack on New Phoenix. The Requiem Campaign has begun; the Covenant forces of Jul 'Mdama and the crew of the UNSC Infinity engage in a vicious battle of wits for control of the Shield World. After an accident within one of the Shield World's facilities, two individuals become embroiled in events beyond their reckoning. Rather OC-Centric.
1. Prologue

Dust and debris filled her vision, as her lungs burned from the rubble around her. Every now and again as she struggled to even see, fumbling around, an errant plasma bolt or stray bullet would light up the dust cloud, making it harder and harder to get her bearings. She could just hear screaming, guttural snarls, and war-cries, all of them barely audible over the explosions and gunfire. Suddenly, a tall shadow rushed forward, noticing her through the rubble. As the figure stepped through the dust, it soon became apparent that it was human. Clad in a black and dark grey suit of armour, and a black helmet with a silver visor, the human moved forward, before calling out.

"Get down!"

Suddenly, she was tackled, thrown to the ground by the man, as he held her to the ground, hunched over her as she stared into the featureless void of a visor. He then holds up a hand, continuing to keep her pressed to the ground, before standing up. Making no attempt to rise, she watched in horror as the man drew a rifle from his back, taking aim at something unseen in the rubble. Soon, another imposing black figure approached; impossibly tall, vicious, and _alien_ , with two glowing blue slits for eyes, and several large elegant plates of metal for a face. The man turned, firing off a burst from his rifle into the creature, and it just kept coming, a strange blue aura projecting around it as the bullets slammed into its torso.

"Come on, Split-lip! Show me what you got!" The man seemed to taunt, continuing to fire, as the alien continued to advance, drawing a strange device from one of its legs. Then, it pressed a button, and two brilliant red lights shot out from it, forming an elegant, deadly blade. The man got another burst off before the creature advanced in an eye-blink, and cleaved the man in two. He didn't even scream, only letting out a pathetic moan as his body crumpled onto the ground.

Feeling the wet splash of hot blood over her face, it took all her composure not to scream in terror, as the creature let out a triumphant roar, stepping over the man's corpse. Tears streamed down her face, as she struggled, doing her best to try and remain unseen and play dead.

It didn't work.

Suddenly, the alien raised its blade again, this time aimed at _her._ Looking up in horror, she let out a scream, as it brought down the blade, and-

* * *

Suddenly shooting up from her bed, eyes wide, Lucy Grayson felt her lungs painfully heave, her breathing ragged and heavy as cold sweat dripped from her forehead. She looked to the clock by her bedside; four-thirty AM. She rolled her eyes, rubbing her forehead. Her nightmares just wouldn't stop; they'd go away for a week, then come back, then disappear, then return all over again to haunt her dreams.

Looking out the window, Lucy breathed a sigh of relief. It was just New Phoenix. Not Reach. Definitely not Reach. That was where-

Lucy shook her head, exhaling deeply. She wouldn't go back. Not there, not again. Reach in the past; six years, to be exact. She had to get over it. She couldn't go back there.

Lying back down onto her drenched pillow, Lucy grimaced; it would be hours before she got back to sleep if her usual sleep pattern was accurate. She had to stop thinking about it, to think about something else.

Like the Spartans.

She had seen those heroes more than once before. Most from the newest generation, when she was watching them leave aboard the UNSC Infinity, standing tall and proud. It had been a special day; Lucy had never seen a ship leaving for its maiden voyage before, let alone one as big as Infinity had been. She remembered the day clearly; they went out to a fancy restaurant, caught a movie beforehand, and even met one of the Spartans there; a surprisingly awkward young man named Miller. Then, they visited a memorial to-

Lucy then frowned; 'Don't focus on that', she chastised herself, but the memorial was so vivid, because she had seen one of the Spartans the memorial was meant for. He had been clad in bulky blue armour with a golden visor, and had protected the evacuation ship she was on. Carter, the plaque on the memorial stated. Others felt proud, grateful, solemn or sorrowful while looking at the memorial, Lucy remembered only feeling numb as she remembered each shot he fired, each alien he killed, each step he took in-front of her transport.

That wasn't to say she wasn't grateful, though. She only survived Reach because of him, she would be crazy not to be grateful, but his method, his way of fighting had a certain... brutality to it that sent shivers down her spine to this day.

Still, he saved her life, and the lives of many others. And he wasn't the one who haunted her nightmares, at least.

Closing her eyes, Lucy let herself fall into a hopefully dreamless sleep. She'd deal with the problem in the morning.

* * *

The Grayson apartment wasn't exactly spacious, but nor was it cramped. It was technically still just four rooms, but those rooms were large enough for Lucy to have her privacy. It was a cheap sort of place; her Father had only just landed a job again, and war refugees had awful enough luck to get the worse places back on Earth. Lucy felt lucky enough that they scored a place in New Phoenix rather than somewhere like Brazil or Qatar. At least here she didn't have to look at any of those alien asylum seekers, especially the Sangheili.

"Afternoon, Lucy. You slept in pretty late. Sleep well?" Lucy's father, Miles, asked, giving her a warm smile as he served up the extremely late breakfast onto the kitchen bench; pancakes absolutely lathered in honey. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Lucy returned the smile, sighing deeply.

"Not great, Dad..." Leaving the question hanging, she moved to sit down at the table, noticing her father's smile vanish, replaced by a concerned frown. He then speaks, his voice softer.

"Bad dreams again?" Lucy gave a quiet nod, as her father sighed, continuing. "I know, I have them too. I miss her too. If you need to talk, I'm here-" Closing her eyes, Lucy mumbled softly as she started to eat her breakfast, poking at it slowly.

"I'm fine..." Giving a slow nod, Miles was obviously unconvinced, but chose not to press the issue further. He then spoke, trying to brighten the mood.

"Well, at least it's a Saturday. No school, no work, just whatever we want to do." A small smile graced Lucy's lips at that, all while she continued to slowly get through her pancakes. She then replied, smiling.

"There anything actually worthwhile to do, though? There's no good movies out in July, Dad, and Matt went on holiday with his family, remember?" Nodding his head, Miles gave a smile, replying.

"Oh,I remember. And it's not a movie, no. But, I got us some tickets to the Breakout Game today." Lucy's smile grew wide as she balked, laughing.

"You didn't!" Miles gave a chuckle, replying.

"Sure did; up in the box even. Private seats, great service, all expenses paid." The girl beamed, before asking, an eyebrow raising.

"How did you pay for it, though? We aren't _that_ rich." Giving his daughter a wink, Miles then retorted.

"Adam from Team Warthog owed me a favour. Thought it was time I cashed in." Suddenly, Lucy stood up, hugging her father tightly as she spoke.

"Thanks Dad. You're the best." Miles closed his eyes, leaning into the hug, before opening them again, speaking.

"Now you better finish up; the game's in about an hour." Lucy then blinked, before replying.

"Oh. Right..." Glancing to the clock, she looked at the time; a quarter to one. She let out a huff; she hated sleeping in so late. Looking back to her pancakes, she began to shovel them into her mouth, rushing to finish them, as her father gave a chuckle, chiding.

"Lucy, you aren't a five year old anymore. Don't rush your food." Lucy then mumbled, trying to chew the last of the pancake in her mouth.

"S- _mph_ -ry, _Mph_ -d." Finally swallowing it down, Lucy then spoke again, repeating herself. "Sorry, Dad." Miles gave a smile, before standing up.

"Now go get dressed, I'll get the car ready." Lucy gave a wide smile, standing up as she nodded, before rushing back off to her room.

"Okay, Dad!"

* * *

The game had been a short affair; five rounds, Team Warthog versus Team Wolverine. To cut a long story short, Team Warthog had wiped the floor with Team Wolverine, to the adoration of hundreds of screaming fans. All in all, the game lasted an hour.

And Lucy had loved every minute of it, still cheering along with the crowd as they all watched Team Wolverine be dragged off, struggling to even move with the Lock-down paint still clinging to their bodies.

All in all, it was the perfect way to forget about her nightmares; at least, for now.

Walking out of the stadium with her father, she looked out into the harsh sun of New Phoenix, smiling as the two of them walked back to the car. She then spoke, looking up to the man.

"God, that was so cool. Maddox just swooping in from the fucking sky and locking down Lang, Fifield getting his ass whupped again..." Miles gave a smile, nodding as he chuckled.

"Best part about this is that someone at work owes me fifty creds." Lucy then giggled, before giving him a playful slug to the arm. Relenting, Miles then continued. "Alright, I lied. The best part is seeing you so happy. Wouldn't change this day for the world..."

Soon, as they reached the Car-park outside the stadium, the sound of commotion and sirens became quite clear, as they quickly noticed Police Officers, clad in full Riot gear, and armed with military grade weapons, calling out to the crowd, trying to organise them into an orderly line. Up above them, a Hornet in police colours hovered, providing overwatch to the Officers below. Miles looked down to Lucy, noticing her breaths becoming shorter, and faster, her eyes wide, her smile gone. Miles then moved in-front of her, grabbing and holding onto her hand carefully, speaking softly.

"Lucy, we'll be fine. The war's over, it's not New Alexandria again, I promise. It's probably just a riot. We'll be fine." Staring into her father's eyes, Lucy started to calm down, before nodding, still breathing deeply. Miles then continued, sighing. "Now, I'll go see what this is all about. Just stay here, keep breathing. I'll be back in a minute, got it?" Soon enough, she gave a hesitant nod, inhaling deeply. Miles then let go of her hand, before moving in through the crowd to try and speak with one of the officers. Approaching the armoured man, he made an attempt to act nonthreatening, speaking up.

"Officer, what's going on? Haven't seen cops roll out with equipment like this since Reach." The Police Officer looked to Miles, before speaking, his voice muffled slightly by the riot helmet over his head.

"Don't know much. Just got orders to evac everyone from the city from up top. Don't know why. We're trying to form an orderly line for the evac buses, sir." Miles' eyes widened as he took in what the officer said, before giving a nod, trembling slightly.

"G-got it... I... I'll get ready..." Turning around before the officer could reply, Miles then rushed back to Lucy, who looked up at him expectantly. She then spoke, her voice distant.

"What's happening?" Miles then quickly replied, his voice taking on a commanding tone.

"Lucy, we're going to be alright, but we have to evacuate New Phoenix. Just... do what the Police Officers say, and everything will be fine." Lucy felt tears running down her cheek as she trembled, her voice cracking as she tried to speak.

"N-no... Please... Not like New Alexandria... You promised..." Miles gave a sigh, closing his eyes as he wrapped his arms around his daughter's head, pulling her in gently.

"I know... I know..." Suddenly, people started to scream, and point to the sky, as both Miles and Lucy turned up to the now blazing red horizon. The Police did their best to calm people down, but it was a losing effort.

Suddenly, in the distance, a red beam of light slammed into the city centre with a deafening roar, though Lucy quickly realised that it was no Glassing Beam; there was no shockwave from the blast, the buildings were perfectly fine. Then, in an eyeblink, a crimson wave of energy burst out from the beam, tearing through the city and towards the crowd.

Looking to her father, terrified beyond all belief, Lucy only had a brief moment to scream before the wave washed her, and the crowd, and then-

 _PAINAGONYSUFFERINGTORTUREPAIN_

And then... nothing...


	2. Chapter 1

_Ravine Facility – Shield World 'Requiem' – February 9th, 2558_

Gabab had always admired Forerunner architecture. It made sense; they were the holy gifts left behind by their diving masters, so of course they were something to be admired. And the titanic citadel looming in-front of him was no exception. It was a thing of elegant beauty; floating metal shifted flawlessly from place to place, and the size only seemed to hint at how massive the interior must be, and the importance of such a structure. It made the Unggoy feel even more dwarfed than usual, though the fact that his Sangheili commander; a particularly belligerent Minor by the name of Grik 'Vahran was standing behind him wasn't helping.

He was part of a salvage team sent out here by Jul 'Mdama to recover... whatever it is he said to recover from the citadel. He didn't exactly remember, but it was important. The team was small, as to not attract the attention of the newly arrived humans; about ten Unggoy, a Sangheili, and five Promethean Crawlers. He knew that there was no way they could remove everything from the citadel with a crew this size; but there was something inside the structure that they needed. Grik then let out a growl, glaring daggers at the Unggoy below him.

"What do you wait for, Unggoy? The Didact's Hand will not wait, and we _must_ enter the temple." Gabab gave a nod, waving his stubby claw as he replied.

"Sorry, boss. Got distracted by its... majesty for a second." The Sangheili then snarled, clenching one of his fists.

"Don't let it happen again; failure will not be tolerated, especially not in-front of one of our lords' gifts." The Unggoy blinked in surprise underneath his breath mask, as a large, imposing figure stomped next to Gabab for emphasis, its hooked, orange Hardlight Blade far too close for comfort. Looking up, Gabab gazed up at the Promethean Knight Lancer, its Light Rifle raised, as it gave a bizarre, almost feral growl, though its movements were anything _but_ feral. It moved with lethal purpose and efficiency, uncaring of the others around it. It had a task, it completed it; end of story. Gabab then looked back to 'Vahran, before speaking.

"Y-yes boss. I'll shape up." The Sangheili stepped forward, biting back a response, as the other Unggoy in Gabab's unit moved up to follow, the Knight taking point, along with the quadrupedal Crawlers moving in sync with the larger construct. Shaking his head, Gabab rushed to follow, running as fast as his short legs could carry him to keep up with the rest of the salvage team.

Gabab was at least grateful for his rank, even if he wasn't the best soldier in the unit. Just because he had survived the Battle of Delta Halo (Admittedly by hiding as the green demon slaughtered his way through to the Prophet of Regret), upon his induction into Jul 'Mdama's army, he had been granted the rank of Unggoy Imperial, and authorised special equipment; a red armoured combat helmet, better armour, and his favourite of all toys, Plasma Grenades. He was now allowed to chuck Plasma Grenades as much as he wanted, as long as he didn't hit any allies on purpose. It wasn't _his_ fault that those stupid Kig-Yar were standing near those humans during the original expedition to Requiem, after all.

Suddenly, the team stopped at the edge of the Ravine when the Unggoys' Commander, a fellow Unggoy Imperial clad in purple battle armour, by the name of Poonflip, spoke.

"How we supposed to get across if there no bridge?" 'Vahran then retorted, scoffing.

"The gods' gifts, of course. Do you doubt their abilities?" Poonflip enthusiastically shook his head, as the Knight Lancer stepped forward. Suddenly, it hunched over, as the large wings on its back spread, disgorging a floating Watcher, the machine quickly flying above the group. Then, it drifted quickly over to the other side of the Ravine, before firing a blue beam at something unseen on the walls of the citadel. Suddenly, two prongs stretched out from the other side, projecting a bridge of glowing blue light to the other side. The Knight and Crawlers took the first steps, moving across it without breaking their stride. 'Vahran then followed, strutting proudly as if to say 'I was right', before the Unggoy followed, raising their Plasma Pistols; just in-case. Gabab followed suit, raising his own as they moved across into the courtyard of the citadel; suddenly, the walls surrounding them felt dominating and intimidating more than graceful, as they cast a titanic shadow over the group. The Watcher then moved to the edge of the courtyard, before firing the same blue beam at the wall.

And then, as if by magic, what was once a wall became a door, sliding back to reveal a short tunnel, leading to a lift of flowing energy; a gravity lift. The Knight, once again, took point, stepping through, its Light Rifle raised, as the Crawlers moved in behind it, the Watcher returning to its back. 'Vahran then followed, raising his own Storm Rifle as he stepped into the lift, letting the energies carry him down.

Gabab then stepped into the gravity lift and felt his limbs go limp, as the energies carried him down the looming chasm, leading further down into the structure below.

As he landed, the weightless feeling vanished, as he buckled on the ground. Quickly rising, he realised that he couldn't see a thing beyond the glowing spines of the Prometheans, and the glow of his Plasma Pistol, and switched on the low-light vision on his mask. The other Unggoy, however, were not as lucky as Gabab, and had to rely on their own natural sight. Suddenly, the surroundings quickly became clear, if a bit greenish. The group were in a massive, ornate platform, leading below into dozens of different winding passages and tunnels. 'Vahran then let out a low growl, commanding one of the other Unggoy, Radap.

"Activate the Kindlers, and make haste; the gods will not wait." Soon, Radap removed two spherical devices from his back, flicking them on. Gabab watched as the two devices started to float, each projecting twin oscillating scanners, before speeding off down the tunnels. 'Vahran then switched on a Holomap, as the tunnels slowly became mapped by the Kindlers. Both the Sangheili and Knight watched the map intently, while the Crawlers and other Unggoy took positions around the platform, their weapons ready. Then, 'Vahran barked, glaring at the Unggoy.

"It's time; the way has been lit. Onward, brothers!" Falling in behind the Sangheili and Knight, Gabab rushed through, his Plasma Pistol raised as they moved through the tunnels. The first thing he noticed was that the metal was shifting all around them; bridges were formed, and removed just as quickly, paths were quickly blocked off as new ones were revealed, and the sound of distant grinding metal and pulsing energy echoed through the halls of this fortress.

Soon, the group reached a small antechamber, with a glowing blue console right in the middle. The Sangheili stepped forward first, speaking.

"Appears to be some kind of power-station. From here, we should be able to restore this temple to its full grandeur." 'Vahran then looked back to the Knight, as it deployed the Watcher again. The Watcher then drifted to the console, firing the blue beam again, as the room began to pulse with bright blue energies.

Gabab then flicked off his low-light mode, as the room began to light up. The Unggoy swore he could see the tiniest of grins on the Sangheili's mandibles, as he moved around the chamber, speaking to Poonflip.

"Major, have half of your Unggoy and the Crawlers secure this chamber. I will take the other half and the Knight and secure the primary artifact. Am I clear?" Poonflip enthusiastically nodded his head, before giving a salute.

"Yes, boss! No stinkin' human gets in here!" Gabab then watched as 'Vahran pointed at several other Unggoy, barking.

"You three, prepare your weapons. You're with me." He then pointed to Gabab, as the Unggoy's eyes widened. "And you..." He then snarled, pointing to the Unggoy's Plasma Grenades. "You're in the rear, use your grenades sparingly. If you hit any of us with them, I will ensure that your death is painful. Understood?" Gabab gave a nod, trembling under the Sangheili's gaze as he replied.

"Y-yes boss. I'll be c-careful." The Sangheili bared his mandibles, before turning around, moving down further to the tunnel, followed by the Knight and the four Unggoy. As they moved through, Gabab quickly realised that the Sangheili and Knight were following the pulsing lines of energy, as if they were important somehow. They probably were important somehow. These kinds of things usually were.

As the group continued through, they eventually came across yet another massive chamber; a large, circular platform suspended over a pit that seemed to be endless, with a large, pulsing light in the middle on a raised dais of some kind. It was blinding, even through Gabab's helmet, forcing him to cover his eyes as the Sangheili bowed his head reverently. The Knight then stepped forward, followed by 'Vahran, moving closer to the glowing energy, as a light bridge extended for them. Then the Sangheili spoke, turning around to bark orders at the Unggoy.

"Spread out! Secure this chamber at once!" The Unggoy then moved over the Light Bridge, weapons raised, as Gabab looked back to his Plasma Grenades; oh, if anything attacked, he would be _ready_ for them!

Suddenly, a holopanel was projected from the light; it appeared to be another console. Detaching the Watcher yet again, the Knight stood back as the floating device drifted over to it, firing off yet another blue beam. Though, unlike before, something went wrong, and the panel started to repeatedly flash dark crimson, before projecting a symbol Gabab recognised as the symbol of the Librarian. Gabab's grip on his Plasma Pistol tightened, as the Knight Lancer stepped back, raising its Light Rifle cautiously, glancing around as the blue energies were replaced with dark crimson, the light bridge vanishing. 'Vahran then raised his Storm Rifle, looking around for the threat as he snarled.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Gabab then yelled out, becoming more and more nervous with each passing second.

"Not my fault!" Suddenly, the group heard the dull throbs and hums of energy, as dozens of constructs rose from the pit, quickly surrounding them; Sentinels, mostly a dull silver, though some were clad in resplendent golden plating, all armed, and aimed at them. The Watcher quickly moved to protect its Knight, projecting a Hardlight Shield in-front of it, as 'Vahran took a defensive stance. Then, one of the Sentinels fired, shooting an orange beam into Radap, spilling his blue blood onto the structure as he collapsed, barely having time to yelp. Then, 'Vahran called out.

"A test of our faith? Then we shall pass! Destroy them!" Then, the Sangheili fired off a burst from his Storm Rifle, downing a Sentinel as the rest began to open fire, showering the platform with orange and blue beams of light. The Knight quickly jumped out of the way of one of the beams, firing its Light Rifle at one of the golden Sentinels, sending it plummeting back down into the pit, ablaze as its systems melted.

Gabab then began to fire his own Plasma Pistol pressing down the trigger repeatedly as he sent green bolts of plasma at the Sentinels, who responded with more beam fire. Then, remembering his Grenades, he removed one from his pouch, before pressing down on the button, hurling it with all the force in his little body at one of the silver Sentinels. It stuck, glowing brighter and brighter as the Sentinel continued to fire, until exploding in a white-hot fireball of Plasma, taking another Sentinel down with it. 'Vahran, meanwhile, continued to fire burst after burst from his Storm Rifle, roaring in anger as he downed another Sentinel, but with each one they seemed to take down, another rose up, taking its place, more firing beams that claimed the lives of the other two remaining Unggoy, burning their bodies in a grisly fashion, leaving Gabab, 'Vahran, the Watcher and the Knight alone.

Gabab watched as a beam impacted the Knight, bouncing off of its shields as it then turned, firing its Light Rifle again and again, scoring kill after kill. It was obvious just by looking at the Knight that it was far superior in every way to the Sentinels. All while, the glowing dais in the centre of the platform continued to glow brighter and brighter, soon joined by a beam from the ceiling. The Unggoy's eyes widened, all while the wave of Sentinels... stopped. No more were rising, and the Knight was swiftly cutting down the remaining ones with accurate blasts from its Light Rifle. 'Vahran then cheered, yelling out.

"None may match the majesty of our Gods' true servants! Not even the False Sentinels!" Gabab wasn't so sure that they had won, however, as he heard a far deeper, more terrifying pulse of energy below, almost like the Anti-Grav engines of a Wraith. Then, slowly, an imposing, gigantic form drifted up behind 'Vahran, as Gabab's eyes widened in horror. Trembling, he raised his Plasma Pistol, just above the Sangheili. Turning around, 'Vahran came face to face with the twin energy shields of a Sentinel Enforcer, pulse lasers primed and ready. Quickly rushing to the Sangheili, the Watcher then projected another Hardlight Shield, deflecting the first barrage of red pulse lasers, though Gabab quickly noticed the Watcher's shield blink from blue to red. It wouldn't last another volley like that. The Knight then began to fire at the Enforcer, as the light in the centre grew almost blinding.

Suddenly, a pulse laser round slammed into the Watcher, and it began to retreat, its lights flashing orange indicating damage, before it reinserted itself onto the Knight's back to initiate self-repair, shutting down entirely.

Quickly raising his Storm Rifle, 'Vahran ducked out from behind the Hardlight Shield, emptying it at full auto into the shields. He watched as the Enforcer's own shields flared red, before dissipating, exposing the construct, as the Knight and 'Vahran poured more and more fire into it, though it just seemed to bounce off of its tough exterior. The massive construct fired again, this time aimed at the Knight. Suddenly, the Knight seemed to fold in on itself, before disappearing in a flash. Then, just as suddenly, it appeared on the other end of the platform, firing on the Enforcer again, though this time the shields reappeared, having recharged. It then brought its guns to bear on the Knight, firing off a barrage of rockets that slammed into it, just breaking its shields, and forcing it to kneel briefly. 'Vahran then tried to fire again, before a volley of pulse lasers slammed into him, sending him reeling to the floor, violet blood splattering across the platform as he let out a roar of agony.

Gabab then took aim, his claw trembling as he started to hold down the trigger on his Plasma Pistol, allowing it to overcharge. He watched as the pistol started to heat up and vibrate, a glowing green orb appearing at the end of the gun. He took aim, ready to let go of the trigger.

Then, a stray pulse laser round slammed into the ground next to him, the shock-wave throwing his aim off as he went flying, the overcharged shot going wild. Gabab felt himself go flying, landing just at the edge of the platform, almost sailing off until one of his surprisingly nimble claws managed to latch onto the edge of the platform, his other claw continuing to hold onto the Plasma Pistol as if his life depended on it. Feeling his short legs dangling helplessly below, he started to pull himself up, using all of his strength to get his head just above the platform again. Finally setting his elbows down, he breathed a sigh of relief into his breath-mask. Then, that relief vanished as he realised where the shot went; right for the glowing orb in the centre.

The green bolt slammed into the orb, before sending out a pulse of energy, causing the orb and beam to vanish in a flash of light; no shock-wave, no big explosion, nothing. It just made Gabab feel all tingly and weird. Pulling himself back up to the platform, Gabab watched as the Enforcer fell from its height, its Anti-Grav projectors suddenly failing, its glowing optic fading out into nothing, as it fell into oblivion. Gabab then stood up, looking to the others; the other Unggoy were all dead, 'Vahran was dead, and the Knight...

The Knight had collapsed to the surface of the platform, lying there as if dead, its orange lights flickering between orange and dull lifeless grey. But it wasn't fading away, disintegrating and purging its data like a Knight usually would after suffering so much damage. Gabab's eyes widened in horror as he realised his mistake; he had harmed one of the Gods' true servants; if 'Vahran had still been alive, he would probably have thrown him down into the pit himself for such a mistake.

Concerned, Gabab looked to the Knight, his helmet obscuring his shocked expression underneath. Then, the Knight started to rise, and Gabab initially felt a sense of relief as the glowing orange lights fully reasserted themselves. That relief vanished as he watched the Knight's movements carefully. Gone was that graceful sense of methodical, ruthless efficiency; the cold, calculated movements that struck fear in Gabab every time he saw a Promethean Knight in action. Instead, the Knight's movements appeared unstable, unsure of itself, almost like Gabab got when coming down from an Infusion high. The Knight rose to a knee, moving slowly, as it looked to its surroundings, utterly confused. Then, it rose up, looking to the ceiling. Finally, it looked down to itself, seeming to tremble...

And let out a piercing, fearsome metallic shriek that made Gabab wince and collapse to the ground, clutching his ears in pain as the Knight seemed to panic, constantly looking around the chamber in what appeared to be a mix of terror and confusion.

* * *

In an eye-blink, it had felt like someone had flicked on a switch, turned something on, and it all came rushing back. The first thing dominating Lucy's mindscape was the pain; that pure and total agony that threatened to never go away, as everything vanished entirely.

Then the memories came flooding back, and with them, the nightmares. Almost mechanically, the memories seemed to be listed off in her head. She was Lucy Grayson, born August 12th, 2541 in New Alexandria, Reach. Her father was Miles Grayson, accountant for Breakout Team Warthog. Her mother, Amanda Grayson, Lieutenant, Junior Grade, Weapons Officer aboard the UNSC Pillar of Autumn, killed in the aftermath of the Fall of Reach. She was a resident of New Phoenix. She was human.

 _She escaped Reach, leaving her mother behind, watched as thousands died in-front of her eyes, watched as people she never even knew and would never get to know were cut down in-front of her trying to save her life. She could still feel the blood on her face as if it were fresh, as if it had just happened. So much blood, rubble, death, glass, ash, pain, agony-_

Kneeling to the ground, Lucy felt registers ping as it felt as if her head was being cradled. Wait... ping? Shaking the thought away, she then tried to open her eyes. Instead, everything just seemed to... come into focus, like wearing glasses, as she felt power and strength return to her; she could move! Though as she tried to, her body felt... unfamiliar. The instincts to move were still there, but something felt out of place. Slowly rising to her knee, she looked around, expecting to see a hospital room; something must have gone wrong. An attack by a Covenant terrorist or Innie sympathiser, and she must have been hit badly by it. Oh, her father would be so worried... As she looked around, she realised with confusion that this probably wasn't Earth. She then stood up, looking around as she took in the chamber. She stood on a massive, ornate, circular disk, suspended in the air of a larger chamber, lit only by pulsing blue lines of energy over the walls of the utterly alien chamber.

This wasn't right; not one bit. What had even happened? She then looked down to try and breathe, calm herself down, before terror gripped her, and she noticed not her own familiar human body, but something else... something different.

She stood at least three times as tall as she used to, with tall, powerful legs of shifting, floating armoured metal, elegant with lines of fierce orange energy pulsing through her body. Just above that, she just barely saw two small arms, very much like her own, though moving them felt difficult, like they weren't actual arms. Trying to move them, she then looked to what had _actually_ replaced her arms. Both arms were powerful, clad in the same metal as her legs, with her left arm ending in a wicked hooked blade of pure orange light, projecting out from it, whilst in her other hand, she carried a strange, floating rifle of some kind. It didn't feel normal, more as if was built into her arm, rather than being held in a hand like a rifle should be.

So, Lucy did the only thing she could think of when faced with such circumstances.

She screamed.

* * *

Gabab watched as the Knight flailed about in terror with some curiosity, continuing to clutch his Plasma Pistol tightly just in-case. He gulped quietly, realising that this was his fault. He somehow broke a Knight; one of the Gods' true servants! No-one had ever managed to do that before, not even the green demon guy back when the Didact was around!

He then turned around, terrified as he looked for an exit; the Light Bridge was still out, and the way back to the tunnel looked way too far to jump, even if he expended methane from his tank to try and jump real high. There didn't even seem to be any controls or consoles he could use to get the bridge back on, and the Watcher was still on the Knight's back. Then, he heard a strange, curious noise; a strange metallic whine. As he turned to the noise's origin, he saw the Knight, now collapsed to its knees, cradling its head with those weird little hands on its torso, making the strange noises. Except, the noises sounded somehow familiar, as if he knew what they were.

It almost sounded like sobbing...

He had to do something to fix this; even if 'Vahran was a smoking corpse now, if he came back to the ship with a broken Knight and no artifact, he doubted that the Didact's Hand would be merciful. He decided to step forward, trembling as he began to speak, looking up at the Lancer.

"Uh... y-y-you alright, big guy?"

The Knight then turned quickly to look right at him, glaring at the diminutive Unggoy with those narrow, blazing orange slits it had for eyes, as it seemed to tremble. Why was it doing that?

* * *

 _'Covenant! Please no! Not again!'_ Lucy's mind went into overdrive as she stared at the Grunt standing before her; it seemed to be afraid of her as she watched it. As she looked over it, she started to rise again, and came to a realisation that provided some amusement; not enough to distract from the horror of her situation, but enough to at least calm her down slightly. The crab-like creatures that once stood at around her height just barely stood over her knees now. At this height, they no longer looked intimidating, or threatening. They honestly looked rather pathetic, more of a pest than anything else.

She stepped back slightly, wincing as she felt the heavy impacts of her new feet on the metal ground. The Grunt then tilted its head in confusion, before speaking again, its voice filtered through the strange orange battle-helmet it wore.

"Something wrong?" It then seemed to mutter to himself, shaking its head. " _Please don't be broken, please don't be broken, please don't be broken..._ " Lucy then processed the information she was hearing, coming to a conclusion; she could understand the Grunt. It wasn't speaking English. She then decided to try and communicate. She attempted to speak.

"H-... H-..." She tried to sound it out, though her voice terrified her; it sounded like her in stereo, except far more metallic and intimidating, with a rumbling air of malevolence beneath the voice. "Hello...?" The act seemed to surprise the Grunt more than scaring it, as it jumped back slightly, replying with wonder in its tinny, high-pitched voice.

"You Knights talk?! I didn't know that!" Lucy raised her head slightly in surprise, as she replied, her voice just as hesitant as she tried to acclimatise to speaking.

"K-kni...ght? But... I'm human..." The Grunt then gave an awkward laugh, replying nervously.

"O-oh man, and you're s-such a great kidder, too! Knights being humans. R-real funny." Giving a harsh, mechanical snarl, Lucy stepped forward, looming over the Grunt as she brandished the blade on her left arm uncomfortably close to the Grunt's head.

"I-... am human!" The Grunt quickly fell to his knees, cowering before her as he held up his hands.

"Okay, okay! You're h-human! No n-need to h-hurt me!" Lucy then relented, stepping back as she lowered her body slightly, watching as the Grunt stood back up, shaking its head as it muttered. " _Oh gods, they're going to kill me when we get back_..." Lucy then let out a huff, looking to her surroundings, then back to the Grunt, before speaking.

"Where-... a-re... w-...e?" The Grunt seemed to be taken aback, before replying, trying to be as friendly as possible, despite its fear.

"Uh... R-requiem. Some 'Shield World' or whatever the big Sangheili up top keep calling it." Lucy then tried to think; she didn't know about even half of what the Grunt was talking about. She then let out a mechanical sigh (Though it came out sounding more like a metallic growl than anything else), before looking back around. She noticed a corridor in the distance, before looking back to the Grunt, speaking.

"D-do... you know... way out?" If Lucy still had a face, she would have given such a proud grin; she was actually starting to get the hang of talking. At least one thing was starting to go right today. The Grunt actually gave a nod, replying.

"What, up to the Ravine? Suuuure! We can just go the way we came in!" His enthusiasm then vanished as he looked back to the corridor, sighing. "But I can't jump far enough with the Light Bridge out. The 'ol Grunty feet aren't strong enough for a jump like that." Lucy then turned to look at the chasm surrounding the platform; the distance was, indeed, far too far for even a peak athlete to make. You would need a Spartan to make a jump like that. She looked back, as the Grunt seemed to have an idea, raising its hand as it excitedly jumped up and down. "Oh, I know! I know! You're big and strong! Can just pick me up, jump across no problem!" Lucy then looked back to the chasm, considering the Grunt's words, before realising something. This body wasn't a peak athlete. From what she saw, it looked stronger than a Spartan even.

She could make the jump.

Looking back to the Grunt, she then replied, looming over him once more.

"H-hold on." Turning around, she then knelt down, anomalous sensors pinging the Grunt climb up onto her back, grabbing on-to some of the spines with his claws, before she rose back up to her full height. She then moved to the opposite end of the platform, bracing herself, before breaking into a heavy sprint. The Grunt on her back buckled and held on for dear life as she ran, until she reached the edge, and leapt off. She sailed through the air, feeling a sense of weightlessness that she knew that she shouldn't have been feeling, two edges of the large frill on her back unfolding into wings of some kind, causing her to glide gracefully, until she reached the other end, buckling onto a knee, and throwing the Grunt on her back right into the wall.

The Grunt lay flat on the ground, moaning in pain, though it was obvious that it wasn't anything serious. It then stood up, brushing itself off, as it looked back up to her. Then, it spoke, trying to be friendly, though still nervous.

"S-so... What do... uh... what do I call you...? I'm Gabab, in-case y-you're wondering." He then paused, before hastily adding. "I-I-I mean, i-if... uh... if you w-want to call me something else, t-then by all m-means! I g-g-graciously accept!" Lucy then stepped forward, looking the Grun- Gabab directly into his helmet, before speaking, trying to sound as clear as possible.

"I-I'm... L-... Lucy..." Gabab then seemed to blink, before replying, laughing.

"Lucy... Real weird name. Not like Unggoy names. Ours make sense, at least." Lucy then sighed, ignoring the comment as Gabab turned around to the corridor, calling out.

"Follow me then, Lucy!" Watching as Gabab quickly began to sprint down the corridor, Lucy then followed, her tall strides easily keeping up with the tiny Grunt, now lost with only her thoughts. What happened to her? She knew that there was no chance this was a dream; the pain had been all too real to be one, and nothing seemed right in the slightest. She had to figure out what had happened, and fast, especially if the Covenant were here all around her.


	3. Chapter 2

As Lucy walked down the looming, almost endless corridors, she realised that her new senses were picking up things that she never even thought possible back when she was human. She could hear the soft hum of the anti-gravity technology moving her legs, the quiet, rushed breathing of her Grunt companion as he sprinted down the corridor, using his large forearms to stabilise himself, though even with him on all fours, he could barely keep up with Lucy's tall strides, forcing her to slow down to a ridiculous degree as to allow Gabab to take point. She could see doors where there should have been walls, access tunnels, structural strengths and weak-points. It was almost as if she not only had the local schematics for the building, but was also capable of processing it real-time. Were it not for the horrifying circumstances she had found herself in, it would have been totally amazing.

She even realised that she had a HUD of sorts, though she wasn't sure if that was the right term, considering that it seemed to be almost innate, rather than projected. She saw an orange bar at the top of her vision, and an ammo counter for the rifle, the bar showing twelve shots before a recharge would be required. There also appeared to be targeting software, and a bio-scanner, though it seemed to only show weak-points in the Grunt just barely in-front of her (It was already aiming at his thin thigh-joints). Then, there were three symbols at the top-right of her vision that she, to be truthful, hadn't the slightest clue about. Lucy shook her head, continuing down the corridors. She'd think about it later; now, there were more pressing issues.

Suddenly, Gabab stopped, holding up a hand as he let out a groan, berating himself.

"Oh, completely forgot! Can you act... er... not broken right now?" Lucy tilted her head in confusion, before replying hesitantly.

"W-wh..at? Wh-y?" Gabab then held up his claws reflexively, obviously expecting a beating, all while nervously trying to explain himself.

"Y-y-you see, the other Unggoy back there, I-I... I not too sure how they'll react if they t-think I broke a Knight. We m-may be in a whole load of trouble if they f-find us out." Lucy was about to retort, but Gabab was making sense here; it was a complete and total nightmare already _without_ being shot at by Covenant. So, she decided to play along, choosing to try and act as intimidating as possible. Gabab then gave her a thumbs up, before moving ahead first. He then called out, trying and failing to hide his fear.

"Uh, h-h-hey, Poonflip? Gripple? Y-you there?!" Quickly, another Grunt seemed to respond, his voice somewhat lower, but far more nasally than Gabab's.

"Gabab! Where you been? Where Minor 'Vahran at?" Gabab walked ahead, as Lucy chose to follow, trying to remain as intimidating and robotic as possible. She then saw a Grunt in similar armour to Gabab rush out from behind the corner, though this new Grunt's armour was purple, rather than the red that Gabab was clad in. Gabab then gave an awkward chuckle, replying.

"Uh, hey Poonflip. 'Vahran and the others are dead now. Not my fault, though! Get this; False Sentinels showed up and attacked us! I would'a died if the big guy here hadn't driven them off!" Poonflip then looked up to Lucy, as she attempted to glower menacingly at him. The Grunt then looked back to Gabab, shivering as he shook his head, replying.

"Well, that sucks. We better head back outside, call big Jul 'Mdama for some reinforcements if they got Sentinels attacking Prometheans here." Gabab gave a hesitant nod, before replying.

"P-probably for the best. Let's head back out?" Poonflip gave a nod, as Gabab and Lucy moved past him, into some sort of antechamber, with a glowing console in the middle, and five other Grunts talking to each other, sleeping, or keeping watch. Lucy then noticed the five dog-like machines standing guard in the centre; all of the same design as her new body. Her HUD helpfully identified them as 'Crawlers'. Then, the Crawlers all turned to look at Lucy as if she had grown an extra head, chittering something that she immediately understood, despite it being gibberish to her audio-sensors.

" _ **ABBERATION DETECTED! CLEANSING PROTOCOLS ACTIVE!"**_ The Grunts around them didn't seem to understand, however, but all panicked as the Crawlers jumped to action, charging weapons. Lucy felt shock as she raised her blade as a makeshift shield as they started to fire off bursts of golden hard-light. She dashed back, moving behind the corner as she dragged Gabab with her. The Grunt then looked up at her, yelling.

"What going on?! What did you do?!" Lucy then replied, her voice trembling, and sending shivers down the spines of all of the other Grunts present.

"N-noth...ing! Th-ey j...ust saw m-e an...d start-ed shoo-ting!" She had to deal with this, and fast, especially if there were more of those things. At that thought, suddenly the rifle on her arm unfolded, revealing a floating scope, and glowing with the same bright golden energy, as her HUD identified the device.

 **[Z-250 DIRECTED ENERGY ENGAGEMENT WEAPON DESIGNATION 'LIGHT RIFLE' = ONLINE]**

 **[COMBAT ANCILLA = ONLINE]**

 **[CHARGE: 12/12]**

She leaned out slowly from behind the corner, before several of the bolts from the Crawlers hit her, bouncing off of a blue aura surrounding her; shielding! She then ducked back, but not before hearing Poonflip screaming to the others, Gabab included.

"What going on! Why that Knight talk?! Why Crawlers shoot Knight?! What do we do?!" Gabab then called back, trembling as the Crawlers continued to fire on their position.

"N-not my fault, b-b-but I kinda, maybe, sorta, definitely b-broke the Knight! Not my fault!" Then, before Poonflip could reply, another Grunt with an even more obnoxiously high-pitched voice than Gabab let out a crazed battle-cry, before raising his Plasma Pistol.

"He has defiled one of the true servants! Join our Crawlie brethren! Slay the infidels!" That call seemed to rally the other Grunts, including Poonflip, as their plasma fire now joined the Crawlers' bolts. Lucy then let out a snarl at the Grunt hiding with her, as he gave a shrug, retorting back.

"Hey, not _my_ fault that Gripple jumped the gun!" Lucy then let out a sigh, shaking her head as she replied.

"I-I'm h...earing th-at... a l...ot... from you..." Before Gabab could complain, Lucy then stepped back out, raising the Light Rifle, and firing off a round, feeling some kind of targeting programming take over aiming. The round aimed true, and pierced a Crawler head on, destroying the construct in a single shot. She then took aim at the other Crawlers, the programming declaring them priority targets over the Grunts, who would have ranked higher were it not for their piss-poor aim. The Light Rifle then discharged again, and again, downing another two Crawlers as that same obnoxious Grunt (Gripple, apparently) let out what was meant to be an intimidating roar, before throwing down his Plasma Pistol, and removing two spheres from his belt, pressing down on them as the two of them started to glow with a brilliant blue light.

Suddenly, her targeting programming redefined priority, helpfully indicating at the Grunt's head as her aim shifted. Lucy hesitated, just for half a second. She had never killed a living being before, never taken a life; what would this do to her? Was she really capable of killing something, even if it was a damn Covie? In that half a second, her decision quickly became as the Grunt started to charge, waving his arms about wildly, Plasma Grenades in hand. She had to do this. She had to survive.

The Light Rifle discharged again, sending a bolt through the Grunt's skull. Lucy felt her metaphorical heart pang as bright blue blood and grey matter splattered out from the Grunt's head as it flew back, the two Grenades leaving its hands. Lucy watched them fly back, before landing on and sticking to a Crawler, and another Grunt. While the Grunt chose to panic, barrelling into another one of his allies as he screamed in terror, the Crawler instead chose to jump into the air, landing on the ceiling as it distanced itself as quick as possible from the group. The grenades then detonated; the Crawler's only destroying itself, and the Grunt's annihilating both itself, a fellow Grunt, and the other Crawler. As the smoke cleared, Lucy realised there were only three Grunts left, still choosing to fire their Plasma Pistols at the two.

Then Gabab leaned out from behind the corner, firing back with his own Plasma Pistol as he hit Poonflip in the kneecap. The purple-coloured Grunt Imperial collapsed, shrieking in pain before being cut down by more of Gabab's plasma fire. Then, the two remaining Grunts looked to each other, before screaming in terror, and running further away into the structure, their arms flailing wildly as they left the battle behind. As the rush of battle ended, Lucy then stepped back out, looking in horror at the carnage she caused, her Light Rifle folding back up. She then spoke softly.

"I-... I-... I-... killed... oh God... oh G-od..." Gabab then let out a cheer, looking up at Lucy with what she could only assume was a smile underneath his helmet.

"You were amazing! Just like 'Bam! Pow! Boom! Kapow!', and we won! I've never actually won a real fight before!" He then seemed to give a wistful sigh, stepping out. "Feels so great now..." Lucy then looked back, before asking.

"D-didn't you... kno-w... uh, what's-hi...s... face? Wh... Why kill him?" Gabab then gave a shrug, replying.

"They were gonna shoot us both. Just looking at you, I thinks that I've got a better chance being on your side." He then gave a chuckle. "Besides, Poonflip always dobbed me in to big Sangheili whenever I got my claws on Infusion, then stole it after they beat me. Screw him." Lucy then gave a hesitant nod. Though it was surreal to see such a cheerful little creature act so callous, it wouldn't do her any good focusing on it; especially when she still had to figure out what was going on. She then gestured down the tunnel with her blade, speaking.

"L-lead th... the way." Gabab then gave a sharp nod, before moving off down the tunnel, his Plasma Pistol raised, before he spoke, obviously becoming more comfortable with her presence.

"So, here's what I don't get, uh... Lucy, was it?" Lucy gave the Grunt a nod, allowing him to continue. "Yeah, Lucy... If you was a human, then why are you a Promethean now?" Lucy continued to walk, speaking, her voice soft.

"I... do-n't k-know..." She then continued, reflecting on the events that lead up to... _this_. "I w-as... ho-me... no w-wait... I... was at a sports game... N-n-new Pho-enix... S... saw a beam hit the c-city... wave hit me... then pain... Oh god... Daddy?" She then stopped, freezing as she started to relive that feeling, over and over again. She then let out a metallic whine, calling out. "D-dad? Wh... where are you? P-p-please!" Gabab seemed to look at her, shifting awkwardly on his feet, before yelling out, snapping her out of her stupor.

" _Anyways_...! Well, methinks that the Gravity Lift is down here. How about a story, then? I've heard great ones from my friend Dimkee! Oh, he tells the most amazing stories. Once, there was this time he and a bunch of other Unggoy were stuck in a real dangerous place..." Lucy then followed, listening to the Grunt ramble. There was something just endearing about it, and it was helping her focus and not collapsing into a nervous breakdown, at least. Soon, the two reached a large pillar of blue, pulsing energy, leading up a massive tunnel to the surface, where Lucy saw sunlight, just as Gabab was finishing a story.

"... and then, the big dumb Jiralhanae actually challenged the demon to a one on one fight! Long story short, the Demon blew his brains out. Blam! Prophet of Truth was angry about that one! Heh..." Lucy then gave a laugh, or rather, made a strange, throaty set of growls that only served to unsettle the Grunt. Then, wordlessly, the two stepped into the Gravity Lift, rising upwards. The experience felt strange to Lucy; not painful, not uncomfortable, just strange. Soon, they reached the top, as Lucy looked out into the sunlight, and the massive courtyard outside, speaking.

"Wh-... What is t-t-this... place...?" The Grunt then gave a reply, speaking.

"Uh, the Ravine! Some kind of big fortress we were meant to salvage. Don't know much else about it, though..." Lucy let out a soft huff, sarcastically replying.

"W-well... th-that's super... help-ful..." God, this speech thing was annoying. If she could just get the hang of it a bit better... It was like she was fighting to say every single syllable, and yet somehow, that was the least of her problems. Gabab then gave a shrug, replying.

"Slept through the Sangheili talking about it. Most of the Unggoy with us did. I mean, who can really pay attention to all those big, meaningless words, right?" Lucy then let out a sigh as she stepped out into the courtyard, her sensors picking up the artificial sunlight on the metal carapace that made up her back. It wasn't the right sort of feeling, though. It had no warmth to it, she could only feel sensors pinging the sensory input. If she had tear-ducts, a face, anything, tears would already be coming down, so Lucy was left with a few meek whines, looking down as she walked through the courtyard of the massive fortress.

Gabab followed closely, looking up as he then spoke, looking to the thankfully still active light bridge.

"So, uh, Lucy, where should we go?" That made them both pause, as Lucy realised that she had no actual plan now. She then replied, hesitant.

"I-I... need to fi-nd... a place... to figure th-th-this all... out..." Gabab then gave a shrug, before replying.

"Then why not try to find some humans? Maybe they could help." Lucy then looked down to the Grunt, excitedly leaning in closer as she spoke.

"There... a-a-re hu... humans here?!" Gabab flinched, falling back as he looked up, stammering a reply.

"Y-y-yeah! There's a big ship absolutely full of humans fighting us here! It's the second time that human ship's been here. Least this time they don't have their big green demon friend." Big green demon... Lucy then tilted her head, asking.

"Y-you... mean th-... the M-master Ch-ief?" The Grunt gave a nod, before continuing.

"Yeah, that's what he's called. Anyways, there's a whole bunch'a human soldiers and demons all here fighting us, and you Promethea-..." He then trailed off, catching his mistake, before resuming, trying to correct it. "Uh... Well, _the_ Prometheans... heheh..." Lucy was far too elated by this news to be angered by it, however. She then continued, probing for more information.

"D-d-do you... know where... any are?" Gabab then shook his head, replying.

"Nah. Those humans go flying with their Pigeons or whatever they're called, drop in some Demons, they kill us, then leave. Can never tell when they're gonna strike next. Don't even know where their bases are." Lucy then looked up to the sky, noticing the metal shell in the far off distance, before responding.

"We n-n-need to... fi-find one, then. C-can you h-h-help me?" Gabab then gave a nod, thinking to himself, before clicking his claws, having an idea.

"Hang on a minute! We don't need to find one of their bases; we just need to find one of ours!" Noticing Lucy give a confused tilt of the head, the Grunt then elaborated. "The humans tend to land wherever we're doing work. It's why we came here with such a small crew, so we _wouldn't_ get noticed. If we can find one of Commander 'Mdama's operations, we can probably lure some humans in!" Lucy then finished the thought, wanting to pick up and hug the Grunt.

"An-d th... then w-we can... get... to the... soldiers!" The Grunt then gave a proud nod, before continuing.

"Bingo!" Then, his good mood deflated as he slowly spoke. "Then... they probably... shoot us... Dang, thought I had a good idea." Lucy then replied, trying to ignore what the Grunt said as to not send her mind racing.

"O-one th... thing at a... time, G-... Gabab." She then looked to the glowing light bridge, before continuing. "Where... the c-closest... Cov... -enant... base?" Gabab then replied, chuckling.

"Place we're calling the Cauldron; real big dig-site. It's where our team came from before being diverted here." The Grunt then started to run, moving to the light bridge as he waved to her. "Come on, we can take a Phantom back! I'm a good Pilot, honest!" Somehow, Lucy wasn't convinced, but considering the circumstances, she wasn't in a position to question. Even if she knew how to fly one of those death machines, she didn't even have the proper appendages anymore. As she moved to follow, she caught her reflection in the shiny metal walls of the fortress, and stopped.

She hadn't caught a good look at herself yet; only peripherals. Somehow, seeing the intimidating sneer, the curved metal 'helmet', the fierce, malevolent orange eyes, just made it all the worse than just looking down and seeing those robotic legs. Staring at her new form, she realised just why the Grunt was so terrified; this body was intimidating, monstrous. It looked like it could break a Brute in two with barely a modicum of effort, and the hooked blade just looked all the more vicious from this angle.

Lucy then looked away, trying to process what she had become, all while trying and failing to focus on following the Grunt. Every time she looked away, she just turned to look back, though, and every time she looked back, she wished she hadn't.

God, what had happened to her? Considering the Covenant presence, Lucy ruled out military experiment. Was it a terrorist attack? She'd never seen an attack capable of changing people into... Knights, the Grunt had called her? And why was she here? She needed some answers. Looking to Gabab, she then spoke, her voice distant and yet with an underlying feral growl.

"G-... Gabab?" The Grunt looked back to her, tilting his head, as she continued. "W-what... was I doing here? What h-h-happened to m-... me?" The Grunt then replied, shaking his head.

"Got no clue. Not too long ago, you were just a regular 'ol Knight, stomping around, helpin' us out. Even saw you kill some human patrol on the way here." At that, Lucy felt even more distant and shocked; she... she killed people? Without even knowing about it? Had she just taken over the body of some robot like in those old cartoon serials? Then, the Grunt continued. "Then, it all changed when someone – not saying it was me – shot some sort of glowing orb with a Plasma Pistol. Saw you collapse, your lights blinking like I'd unplugged something I wasn't supposed to." Gabab then gave a chuckle, continuing. "Then, you got back up, acting all weird, screaming, talking and saying you were human. Don't actually know what that was all about. Thought you Prometheans were the Forerunners' true servants, and you don't really look all that human."

Lucy felt like screaming, stabbing the Grunt and rejecting reality altogether, though chose instead to continue walking as she considered the options. Two theories popped to mind; either she had taken over some sort of alien construct completely by accident, and was now forcibly acting against its orders; or the far scarier option that her mind had been left shackled and suppressed, and she genuinely was responsible, at least partially, for slaughtering those poor people. Then, a thought that chilled Lucy to the metaphorical bone popped into her head; if that's what had happened to her, what happened to everyone else in New Phoenix? Did the same thing that happened to her happen to them as well?

Shaking her head, trying to banish the thought, Lucy then moved across the glowing light bridge, looking to the plains of soft grass waving in the air, the titanic cliffs rising up above a crashing blue ocean, distant towers rising above vibrant green islands far off in the horizon, casting titanic shadows over the clouds themselves. Lucy had never seen a place so beautiful, so vibrant, so alive. It almost distracted from the horror of the situation. Then, she turned to Gabab, who was sprinting over to a large, floating purple hulk of metal, floating above the ground with a gravity lift; a figure that Lucy was all too familiar with from Reach; a Phantom. It was a different design to the ones she saw on Reach; the purple metal was far darker and more reflective, the glowing lines of blue energy were replaced with green, and the design was far more curved, but it was still recognisable.

She already knew that she'd need to use one for transport, but just looking at its imposing form, its heavy Plasma Cannon, the large shadow it cast was already bringing back dark memories of things she'd rather have forgotten. The Grunt then rushed to the Gravity Lift, before floating upward into the troop compartment. Just looking at the lift, though, Lucy realised that she was too wide to actually fit through; the carapace was just too big. She then called out, amazing herself as she managed to do it with barely a stutter.

"I'm too big for the G-gravity lift, I w-won't fit!" Quickly, the Grunt responded through the Drop-ship's loudspeaker (They had those?).

"Hang on, got an idea!" Then, the doors on the left side of the Phantom lowered, revealing a Plasma Turret, and an open troop bay. The Grunt then continued, muttering softly into the loudspeaker. "Just got to lower it a bit..." The Phantom then lurched violently to the side, the engines humming softly as it began to lower. Then, Lucy's audio-sensors piked as the Phantom scraped across the cliff wall, the metal armour shrieking as the Grunt yelped into the loudspeaker.

"Uh oh, hit that one! Sorry about that!" And with that, Lucy's confidence that they could actually find some humans vanished. How was she even going to escape this if the Pilot had no clue what he was doing? Deciding that she'd handle it another time, she lowered slightly, before jumping, her carapace unfolding as she pushed herself up and forward, into the troop bay of the Phantom. It was surprisingly cramped for her new form, forcing her to sit, curled up as much as possible. Luckily, she had room as Phantoms strangely had no seats. As she looked down to the cockpit, the Grunt then closed up the doors. Then, he spoke, chuckling.

"I'll get us to the Cauldron in no time, don't worry about it!" Lucy then replied, looking around as she replied.

"I-in one... p-piece... though?" The Grunt gave a light-hearted laugh, before retorting.

"Of course! I'm trained to fly... a bit." If Lucy still had a face, she would have winced. She then yelled back as she felt the Phantom slowly rise, the soft hum of the engines quickly becoming much louder.

"That d-doesn't inspire c-c-confidence!" The Grunt then gave a chuckle, lifting off with the Phantom as it took off, headed for the Cauldron. Lucy looked to the still open bay doors as the massive cliff-face and fortress grew more distant and distant with each passing second. Even with the horror of her situation, there was just something truly beautiful about this 'Requiem' that set her at ease, if only a bit, kept her mind off of things. Perhaps it was just how pristine the planet was in comparison to Earth or Reach, perhaps it was just her mind playing tricks on her. Either way, it was the only solace she really had, and she was going to be damned if she wasted it.

So, she chose to stare out the bay door, and let the Grunt continue flying, letting everything else just melt away as she started to think, doing her best not to break down screaming again.

What had happened to her? And if this had happened to her, what had happened to the rest of New Phoenix? These questions raced through her mind as the Phantom dipped down slightly, gliding over the water. One way or another, she was going to find out.


End file.
